Moon Dancing on Water
by mikedark2
Summary: Across the sea from Equestria lies the land of Aquilonia, ruled over by Prince Aligorna. Aligorna has waited a thousand years for the return of his love, and with the help of his vizier, he's not waiting any longer. But who is this vizier, what does he want, and can the Mane 6 figure it all out in time?
1. Chapter 1

Cast list

Aligorna: Male Alicorn, leader of the nation of Aquilonia. A proud Prince and former pirate. Controls the oceans. Madly in love with Princess Luna for over 1000 years, and hoping to woo her.

Princess Luna: The dark coated younger sister of Princess Celestia. Raises and lowers the moon.

Strife: Draconequus. Older brother to Discord. Has power over...well...strife. Worshiped in Aquilonia as a war god, but unknown to the Equestrians.

Princess Celestia: With Luna, the defeater of Discord. Alicorn. Crowned princess and ruler of Equestria and teacher to Princess Twilight Sparkle and adopted aunt to Princess Cadence. Raises and lowers the sun.

Discord: Draconequus. Younger brother to Strife. The "Spirit of Chaos". Recently reformed thanks to a friendship with Fluttershy, which has started to develop into something more, and now Celestia's adviser instead of her sword enemy.

Princess Twilight Sparkle: Recently ascended Alicorn and student of Princess Celestia. Princess of Friendship. Talented young sorceress and avid nerd. The baby dragon Spike is her faithful assistant.

Spike: Baby dragon. Twilight's assistant, able to curry messages with his fire breath almost instantaneously. Has a monster crush on Rarity.

Fluttershy: Shy, soft spoken pegasus. Generally shies away from contact with others, preferring to nurture the woodland creatures she takes in, but is extremely loyal when she warms to others. Despite being a pegasus, she's not a great flyer and acts as more of a nurturing earth mother figure to her friends. Occasionally prone to violent rages, especially when her friends are hurt.

Rainbow Dash: Pegasus. Excellent flyer who aspires to join the stunt flying team, the Wonderbolts. A fighter by nature, she has trouble containing her energy and is always looking for adventure. Only pony currently living to ever fly fast enough to generate a Sonic Rainboom.

Rarity: Hoity-toity fashion designer unicorn. Prissy, valuing her appearance at all times to her friends' eternal consternation. Can be extremely obsessive-compulsive. Sometimes seems greedy because she's from a wealthy background with aspirations to become the most famous fashion designer in Equestria, but is in fact quite generous. Mildly aware of Spike's crush and occasionally flirts with him.

Pinkie Pie: An earth pony baker and comedian. Flighty, absent-minded, hyperactive, even borderline manic. Wants nothing more than to make life one big joke so that no one ever has to cry again.

Applejack: Earth pony and part of the Apple family, who run the Sweet Apple Acres farm and apple orchard. Loyal and dependable to a fault, and makes up for lack of flight and magic with great athletic skills and a kick that could bend steel. Sweethearted, family oriented, a secondary earth mother to Fluttershy. Coming from a farm family, she speaks with a country dialect.

Dr. Whooves: aka Time Turner. A dimension flung Time Lord stuck in Equestria for reasons not quite sure to himself. Has become one of Princess Celestia's most important allies. Largely working behind the scenes to make sure things run smoothly, he and his assistant have even stopped a Dalek invasion without many noticing it.

Ditzy Doo: The Doctor's faithful assistant/lover. Pegasus, whose official occupation is as a mail pony. She has a sweet, inviting personality, but most ponies look down on her because she's very absent minded and accident prone. Her defining physical characteristic is being wall eyed. It's frankly a little disorienting, which is a good reflection of her disoriented mindset. Pulls through for her friends when needed though. Some ponies think she's mentally retarded, but chances are that her issues are something else as she is in fact rather bright, just with an extremely short attention span. Has an almost fetish like obsession with muffins.

Princess Cadence: Full name is Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. Is married to Twilight's brother, Shining Armor, who is the head of Princess Celestia's Royal Guard. Together they rule the Crystal Empire. Alicorn, whose power is love and compassion. Capable of using her love as a powerful weapon, especially with the aid of Shining Armor or certain magical talismans like the Heart Spell Crystal.

Shining Armor: Princess Cadence's husband and leader of the Royal Guard. Twilight's older brother. Legendary soldier with a compassionate nature and extreme reserves of perseverance. Co-ruler of the Crystal Empire.


	2. Prologue

Prologue

In the world of Equestria, across the wide ocean from the continent Equestria itself, lies the land of Aquilonia. It is a hard land, ruled over by the Alicorn Prince Aligorna. It is a rocky land, mountainous, with only a few unicorns and no pegasi to generate weather, meaning that most of its weather is the remnants of that created in Cloudsdale in the weather factory that drifts from Equestria across the sea. As such, growing food for the earth ponies that make the majority of the population is a struggle. What they have at their disposal though is the sea itself, which Prince Aligorna's magic has power over. The ponies of Aqulonia have long been known for their skills as fisherponies...and as pirates.

Soon after the defeat of Discord, over 1000 years ago, Prince Aligorna traveled to Equestria to meet the triumphant sisters, hoping to cement an alliance with them. He spent a week there, conducting business with Princess Celestia but spending most of his private time with her younger, dark maned sister Luna. He would sit and watch her in her work at raising the moon at night, and listen to her sing and dance to the night. An arrogant leader who believed the Alicorns to be gods, and understanding that Luna's moon was the driving mechanism behind his tides, he became convinced that it was divine right that they were meant for each other. He never got his chance to court her though. Soon enough, his treaty with the sisters was negotiated and he sailed back to his homeland, agreeing that he would meet the sisters every once in a while to work out new treaties to benefit both parties and even to reduce or eliminate his people's piracy. He hoped that in those times he would be able to pursue the young Luna, but after a few short years, he received the news. Jealous that Equestria's ponies slept through her beautiful night while enjoying her sister's sunny days, Luna had transformed herself into the villainous Nightmare Moon and had been banished into the moon by her sister.

Prince Aligorna was extremely dejected. He had missed his opportunity, and in the process lost what he was so sure was his divinely chosen mate. He and Celestia ruled their respective lands peacefully for 1000 years, maintaining a friendly working relationship the whole time. Then something miraculous happened. Luna started appearing to him in dream, singing and dancing for him, beckoning him back to Equestria. Word soon reached him that one of Celestia's students, Twilight Sparkle, had gathered a group of friends together and used the mystical weapons known as the Elements of Harmony to defeat a returned Nightmare Moon and bring her back to her benevolent form of Princess Luna. Convinced this was a sign, he started to gather a crew and sent word to Celestia that he would be meeting her again soon. It took over a year to complete preparations, but in that time he grew more and more content with this being his opportunity, largely in part to his newly acquired vizier.

This vizier was new to his position, but he was not new to the ponies of Aquilonia. He was Strife. The ponies of Equestria had always assumed that Discord was the only draconequus (dragon pony, the technical name for the chimera-like conglomerate of species that make up their being). This was false. In fact, he had a brother, operating across the sea. But unlike Discord, Strife didn't oppose the people he lived amongst, but made an alliance with Aligorna early on, becoming the Aquilonian's battle god, their protector and benefactor during raids. When the piracy stopped, he had stayed on as one of Aligorna's advisers, and now was whispering in his ear the plan that Aligorna hoped would win Luna's heart.


	3. Dream a Little Dream

Moon Dancing on Water  
Ch. 1: Dream a Little Dream

With a mighty yawn, Princess Luna awoke, her eyes trying to adjust to the light. Her head felt splitting, and her stomach was knotted and churning in her middle. She groaned, to see the face of Prince Aligorna of Aquilonia smiling at her. She rolled out of bed, her eyes examining the room.

"My moon goddess. How are we this morning?"

She was startled by that. Morning? She tried to put together the events of the previous night in her head, trying to find a window to peak out of. If it was morning, surely Celestia was waiting for her to lower the moon so she could raise the sun.

"Ugh. I am so confused. I remember waking up to conduct my duty, then we were at dinner. We ate well enough, but I was soon complaining about drowsiness. I excused myself for the evening, leaving you to finish business with my sister. That's the last I remember until now..."

Her eyes widened as she turned to him with astonishment, as she felt the floor of the room move beneath her hooves. "YOU! We are at sea, are we not? That means... YOU PONYNAPPED ME?! What is the meaning of this? Turn this ship around and return me to Canterlot at once!"

Aligorna shook his head, a slight smirk on his face. "I am afraid that's not possible, dear Luna. The winds were favorable while you slept. We are hours away from port already."

Her eyes narrowed dangerously at him, her noble voice a near growl. "You have power over the sea, Prince. You can use your magic to speed us home."

Again he smirked arrogantly, shaking his head. "No, I really cannot. You see, I intentionally picked the oldest and most rickety ship on the Aquilonian fleet just for this very purpose. We must match the speed of the wind, otherwise we risk the ship not being able to handle the added strain."

Luna was about to launch a tirade, when she felt herself about to heave. She put her hoof to her mouth, trying to hold it in. When the nausea passed again, she groaned out miserably, "What did you slip to me? I feel terrible."

Aligorna looked at her concerned, then put a hoof up and said, "Hold that thought. I do not want you feeling ill. I have to go talk to a certain crew member about what to do about that. The window is on the opposite side to your left. I hope my cabin is enough for your liking."

He walked out the door, while she went to the window, opening it. The salty ocean air hit her skin and took a deep breath. She focused her magic as the moon came down and the sun came up, almost instantly warming the cool autumn air. She strained her ears, listening to the conversation."

"Strife! You didn't warn me that the sleeping drug you slipped into the food last night was going to make anyone ill! Is there any greater risk from it?"

"Why no, my lord. That distraction of the long conversation with the new princesses, Cadence and Twilight, was perfect though. Both are young ponies who are not used to conducting royal business yet, so you managed to both distract them while giving them needed encouragement. Under normal circumstances, that is exactly what you should have done. But no, there is no risk of death or permanent damage from that particular drug. It will cause headaches and nausea though, so even if she thinks she can't hold it down, perhaps I should tell the cooks to start preparing breakfast?"

"That sounds like a splendid idea, Strife. And I appreciate you for coming up with this plan. I'm not sure that I could have approached the Princess any other way."

"Frankly, you know how I feel about love in general. Love is weakness. Strife is related to strive. To strive means to overcome. It means to face down what tries to oppose you. To take those things you want. That I can understand, and that's what I offered you, my lord. You wanted the Princess, and as a pirate you know all about taking what you want. Why play by Equestria's rules?"

"Well, thank you. You are right. We've played this dance of civility with Celestia for too long. We gave up who we are in exchange for peace. Peace is important. I don't want war. But warriors we are, with history stretching back to my grandfather, to an age before your brother ruled Equestria."

"My brother...pathetic weakling. I wish I wouldn't have had to sneak into the castle. I wish I could have looked him in the eye after a thousand years and told him what I think about these rumors of him finding his special somepony. We are draconequus, Discord and I. We don't 'find' anything. We take everything! And we enjoy ourselves fully with it. But no, he goes and lets himself become tamed...domesticated...by some pink haired little powderpuff? Waste of already limited genetic material, if you ask me. Disgrace to his species is what he is. And he always has been. What I wouldn't give to remind him that discord does not breed strife, but strife is the blood from which discord is bred. I was the first. I am the strongest. And I am proud to have aligned myself with a peoples that understand this, that know what good I have to offer because they have lived the hard life. Celestia and her pampered ponies..."

"That's enough, Strife. I am not looking to be part of your sibling rivalry. All I wanted was Luna, and you delivered her to me. Expect your tribute to be doubled when we get home."

"It is a pleasure to serve you, my lord."

Luna gasped audibly, total dismay numbing her being. Discord had a brother...that Aquilonia was aligned with?! What did this mea...

In Canterlot, Celestia had just finished her task of raising the sun, her head slung over her balcony, any color drained from her already white coat. She felt unbearably ill. Worse than she had in well over a decade. Alicorns, being such immense wells of magic with such long lifespans that no pony was quite sure if they were immortal or not, were not known for catching illness. But here she was, feeling like several days worth of food were about to be deposited on the handful of citizens gathering below, looking on her with concern.

Princess Twilight Sparkle poked her head out behind her mentor, looking not any better herself. Already stressed from a long night of diplomatic negotiation, helping Luna, Celestia, and Cadence hammer out a new treaty with Aquilonia, she had gotten only a few hours of sleep. To be awoken with a pain in her skull as though she had taken a kick from her friend Apple Jack, it made her feel like she was two steps from Death's door.

"Princess Celestia...have you seen your sister? Cadence and I woke up feeling really bad, and I was hoping she could help guide us to the castle apothecary."

Celestia turned and entered the her chambers again, gently kicking the french doors to her balcony closed. She shook her head at her young student, letting out something that sounded like a suppressed scream before moaning out, "Noooooo. I have not seen Luna this...I think I'm going to be..." She whimpered, her normally regal composure breaking down, to Twilight's dismay. She supported Celestia as they walked out of her chambers and Celestia directed them to the castle infirmary. She was laid down, a bucket placed before her as she finally let go and vomited. The doctor and nurse both looked concerned, already knowing what was happening but afraid to tell their royals the simple fact that they had been poisoned. Nothing they wouldn't survive, but poisoned nonetheless.

Twilight could tell by looking at them though, her mouth about to fall open when Celestia sat back up, looking a little less pale already, though still week.

"Aligorna...I never thought he would stoop...I am just in shock. Twilight, I think we have been duped. Duped by a professional thief, who has stolen my sister out from under our snouts."

Twilight nodded, shying away from the angry glare coming from her teacher's big eyes. This was terrible, and she already could tell she would have to drag her friends into this. They wouldn't let this go and stay royal business, to be conducted in a royal manner. To them, this would be an affront to her, and one that had to be dealt with the way the group many in both Canterlot and Ponyville had come to call the "Mane 6" dealt with problems.

Under her breath, she mumbled out, "This is going to get a lot worse before it gets better..."

Celestia stood on wobbly legs, but patted her student on her shoulder. "Twilight...if you think you can talk them out of getting involved, do so. But we will need the help of a few of our allies. Come on, we have to get a 'second opinion' on rather or not this is 'chaotic' enough."

Shortly, they were in the courtyard, finding Twilight's friend Fluttershy in a corner, coughing and gagging. Discord, Celestia's former enemy turned staunch ally was with her. Fluttershy was the one to reform him, showing him the power of friendship. Now, with Twilight's ascension to princess and Alicorn, she was a frequent visitor to Canterlot when Twilight was called for royal business. It gave her and Discord a chance to deepen their relationship, and rumors were spreading that they had moved beyond friendship, and given how Discord seemed to admire her flanks when she walked by, maybe even beyond the level beyond friendship. Twilight had never bought that. Discord was a very id driven creature. That was draconequus nature. So she assumed he lusted after anything over a certain age that he deemed appealing to his personal sense of aesthetics. Besides, Fluttershy was, well, too shy to even know anything about lust. Wasn't she?

Discord patted Fluttershy's back as she finally turned to Twilight and Celestia, biting her lip with tears in her eyes. "I didn't think the food was that bad, Princess! Please don't fire the cook!"

Celestia mustered a goodhearted chuckle at that, smiling at the whimpering little pink maned pegasus. "Worry yourself not, dear Fluttershy. It was nothing the cook did. It is not even the food. No, Prince Aligorna betrayed us. I do not yet know how, but he poisoned us in order to take my sister..."

Discord placed an eagle taloned hand under his chin, stroking his goat's beard. "Ah, yes. You did mention something during his meeting with Princess Twilight and Princess Cadence something about him seeming extra excited for the conducting of simple state business. You thought Luna might have had something to do with it?"

Celestia nodded. "Yes. He made no mistake over the past thousand years that he indeed missed her. He said something about how during our first meeting, how they had spent so much time together and developed a strong bond. I of course remember that, and wondered at the time if he might have been considering a courtship with her. At the time I probably would have said no. We were still fresh to the throne. We were learning to be rulers ourselves, and a romance would have been a distraction. Given some time to settle in though, I think I would have warmed to it, but the whole Nightmare Moon business stopped things before they could have gotten even that far."

Fluttershy let out a shaky breath and shook her head vigorously, trying to work the cobwebs out. "I would think that's sweet. I love romance, Princess. Nothing is more adorable than anyone in love. But why would he think it's a good idea to kidnap her? If he wants her as his special somepony, why not ask her?"

Discord chuckled at the innocence of his companion. "Flutters hon, the habits of old pirates die hard."

Fluttershy cocked her head in confusion. "Why are we doing business with a pirate?"

Twilight looked thoughtful and said, "I did some research to prepare myself for his arrival. Apparently he met with both the Princesses after they first defeated Discord here, and solidified an alliance between the two lands that gets renewed about ever 15 years, give or take 2 or 3 years either way. His people aren't just pirates. They're seafaring ponies generally, and excellent fisherponies. They give us a supply of their catches, we give them a portion of our harvests, and they haven't had to pirate ever since. So then the question is...why would he feel the need to resort to it now? And why Luna? Is it just because he's never learned proper courtship etiquette, or is there something else involved? Do they need something and plan to use her as a hostage?"

Celestia nodded and said, "I agree these are important questions to ask, and we will when the time is right. But finding them is what we need to focus on first. Discord, I have a feeling that if diplomacy fails us, we're going to...well, let's say I think we'll be in need of the specific services your powers offer."

Discord nodded. "I understand, Princess. I am at your service for however you need me. But right now, Fluttershy says she doesn't much care for the idea of using the castle apothecary, but she does have some herbal remedies at her cottage saved up. I am going to take her back home since she's too weak to fly herself, make sure she has what she needs, then put lay her down and makes sure she takes a long nap."

Celestia beamed at that. "You two really do make a cute pair. You have no idea how much joy it brings me to see you have a friendship so strong."

Discord didn't say anything, his back already turned as he scooped up Fluttershy, hovering in the air before teleporting out of sight.

Twilight's voice was flat, trying to suppress a contented sigh for Discord and Fluttershy, as she said, "That's one sure bet for us. You don't really think that it will get that far though, do you?"

Celestia shook her head sadly. "I don't know, Twilight. I just don't know. We can't think about that though. It's time to pay our special Doctor a visit."

"No!"

Doctor Whooves, the lost Time lord, shook his head at Celestia and Twilight, standing in his doorway.

Celestia's eyes narrowed at him as she whispered out, "We don't have time to argue, Time Turner. Every second we waste, the further my sister slips from our grasp. We have to intercept Aligorna before her can reach Aquilonian shores. If they make it back to his homeland, then he will hold all the cards in his that point, we might have no other option than all out war. That can't be an option. Our two lands need each other too much to squander a thousand years of peace."

The Doctor was about to speak when his eyes looked up to the sky to see his beloved assistant and special somepony, Ditzy Doo, flying in at high speed. The goodhearted and wall eyed mail pony seemed to be out of control, and he yelled out, "INCOMING!"

Twilight and Celestia scattered as Ditzy slammed into the Doctor and sent them both rolling around the entryway of their shared abode. She popped up as though nothing had happened and turned to the door, bouncing on her hooves excitedly. "HIYA, PRINCESSES! Whatcha dooooooing here?"

The Doctor dusted himself off and pulled himself up. "Ditzy dear, are you okay?"

Ditzy smiled. "I'm fine. I actually was being chased by a flock of geese, if you can believe it. Hee hee!"

The Doctor's voice dripped sarcasm as he replied, "Oh, I can believe it."

Celestia and Twilight both groaned in unison, before Celestia said, "Ditzy, could you please talk some sense into him? My sister's been kidnapped, and he doesn't think it's enough to a threat for you two to get involved."

Ditzy turned on her hooves, her eyes trying to focus as she tried to take on a serious and stern expression. "Doctor! We pledged to tackle any threat to befall Equestria. I think the stealing of the night is a pretty serious threat that needs tackling."

The Doctor rolled his eyes, saying dismissively, "Our talents are needed to fix those issues involving time and its proper operation. I understand the importance of Princess Luna, both to the Princess and to our land, but her abduction is a political issue. What would happen to Equestria if, while we're chasing her around, Daleks or Cybermen invaded?"

Ditzy stamped her hoof, catching everyone by surprise. "I'm overruling you on this one, Doctor. What if something happens to Luna? Then it does become an issue involving time, right? Riiiiiight?"

The Doctor sighed. "Alright. Alright. I'll go try to prepare the TARDIS."

Ditzy smiled, letting her eyes fall into their naturally unnatural pattern again before shouting excitedly, "GOOD! I'LL GO MAKE SOME CELEBRATION MUFFINS!"

She kicked the door shut right in Celestia and Twilight's faces, leaving both Princesses to stare at it blankly, before turning to each other in utter dumbfoundedness...


	4. Calming Stormy Seas

Ch. 2: Calming Stormy Seas

Luna gaped in shock, her previous thought unfinished. Before her stood Strife. She was utterly amazed by him. Discord was surely dangerous, but he had a more whimsical look to match his trickster personality: a pony's head, gray, with a dark brown elongated body and scaly red tail tuffed in white, serpentine in appearance, with green and blue bat wings, one pony and one dragon leg, an eagle's talon, and a lion's paw, with one goat horn (to match the beard) and one deer antler. Strife was composed of all the same elements, that same chimera-like amalgam of leftovers Nature had no clue what to do with, but he was solid jet, blacker than the blackest night Luna had ever produced, darker than the darkest obsidian found in the Crystal Empire, with a flame orange face. Whereas Discord looked like Nature's party favor, Strife looked like a beast from Hell.

She tried to stammer for words that wouldn't come, so Strife filled the uncomfortable silence with a simple, "Ah, hello Princess. It is an honor to meet you. I am Strife, god of war and Aligorna's vizier. It is a royal honor to welcome you to the 'Call of the Whale'. Isn't she magnificent? She's the oldest ship in the Aquilonian fleet. She was the last ship commissioned by Aligorna's father prior to his going to the great beyond. 1300 years she's been sea-worthy, though this might be her last voyage. As I'm sure the Prince has told you, she's become rickety in her old age. To remain sturdy this long though, when the average wooden ship lasts maybe 250 years, is pretty spectacular though."

Luna shifted uncomfortably as Strife gave her a bemused once-over, grinning darkly. She was uncomfortable with being watched as is, still dealing with her own guilt for her past wrongdoings and never sure if a look directed at her was one of scorn and spite from the very citizens whose hearts she was trying her hardest to win back. But having him look at her, it made her feel smaller and more insignificant that she'd felt since before she was Nightmare Moon. And there was no one to be jealous of, to be angry with. This was a more abject sense of insignificance, and it terrified her.

Aligorna saw this and said softly to Strife, "You are dismissed. We will meet you later."

Strife nodded and floated off, allowing Aligorna to stick out a hoof to her. "I apologize if he made you uncomfortable. He means well, but he does have a presence to him that can be overwhelming. How about we get you some breakfast, huh?"

Princess Twilight Sparkle was in one of the barns at Sweet Apple Acres, her friends gathered around her. She looked uncomfortable. Twilight was a sure leader, even if she sometimes didn't think so, and her friends respected her quick wit and her ability to use her encyclopedic knowledge to plan on the fly. So far though, this situation was proving beyond her, and her shoulders sunk as she groaned audibly.

The bright eyed pink party animal to her right patted her on the shoulder. "Oh, Twilight. Cheer up! We'll get the Princess back, and then we can have cake...and ice cream...ooh and really big balloons! And..and..." Unable to come up with anything, she seemed to miraculously pull and air horn out and blew it in her ear, causing Twilight to jump almost into the ceiling, using her young Alicorn wings to ease her dissent.

"PINKIE! Gosh dang, that scared me!"

Pinkie frowned, putting the air horn down. "Sorry."

"No, no. It's okay. My mind's not really here right now. I'm just really worried. I mean, together we've faced all sorts of dangers, saved Equestria dozens of times, and always had a good laugh after. But...war? I just...I don't know if I'm cut out for this."

Applejack adjusted her signature cowboy hat and trotted up, throwing a big hug around her friend. Applejack was not only part of the Apple family, who owned the farm, but was considered the most sturdy and reliable friend in all of Ponyville. "Oh yes you are, Sugarcube. Don't let nothing keep ya down. Ya have us to help ya, ya know that."

The pretty, perfectly coiffed unicorn known as Rarity was next to speak. "Darling, this worry and self doubt...it doesn't look right on you. Take a deep breath, and let's see if we can sort this out."

Circling above them, the blue pegasus with the rainbow colored mane, Rainbow Dash, was practicing her swoops and karate kicks. "Oh, we can sort this out alright. Just give me some time to find them, and I'll beat them all until they cry, then snatch Princess Luna right back. Piece of cake."

Fluttershy shook her pink mane, looking at the ground and speaking in a quiet tone. "Rainbow Dash, I'm not sure that's what we want to do. Wouldn't just...going and trying to beat them up make them angry? We want to avoid a fight, right?"

Twilight nodded at her and said, "Fluttershy's exactly right. Which is why I don't want you girls getting involved. I need you to support me, but I don't want you all putting yourselves at risk. This is too dangerous."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, huffing. "Yeah right! Like we're going to let you have all the fun?!"

Pinkie bounced around on her hooves, giggling deleriously. "SILLY! Twilight, you're so silly! I bet those Aquilonian ponies just need a good party. Who better to show them a good time than your dear old Pinkie Dinky!?"

Fluttershy gulped. She was always the least confrontational of all the "Mane 6", Twilight knew she was already overruled by committee when she said, "Um...Twilight...I..I don't want a fight either. But we aren't going to let anything happen if things break down. The best way for us to support you is to be with you."

Twilight sighed in exasperation. She should have seen this coming. "Alright girls, I'm not going to fight you on this one. But we're all going to have to try to approach this diplomatically...before we start trying to fight anypony!" She shot a glance at Rainbow that made Rainbow stop in her tracks.

"Alright! Fine, no fighting unless we get attacked first!"

Twilight smiled, feeling a little better. "Alright, then we need to get to the Crystal Empire. I'm sure Princess Cadence and my BBBFF will have some ideas too."

Discord was in a state of annoyance, wandering around Ponyville while the 6 had their meeting. It wasn't the continued fear from the citizens he'd terrorized just a short time before that annoyed him. He knew that he had a lot of trust to earn with these ponies, and Celestia's word held a lot of sway but couldn't change hearts on its own. No, he half-expected the askance glances, the huddled little ones, and the windows occasionally snapping shut as be passed, and the few ponies that did approach him and speak to him on friendly terms more than made up for the ones that treated him with such suspicion and fear.

No, there was something else bothering him. He had been trying to recruit unlikely allies whose skills might prove useful in a worst case scenario. He'd already tried Trixie, a unicorn stage magician and former con-artist reformed by Twilight. And been flatly rejected. Trixie had given up her manipulative ways, and part of that was out of respect for Twilight, but the other part was out of fear of being roundly publicly humiliated by her again. The last time they had met, Twilight had flounced Trixie in a magical duel that had left ruined her reputation so completely that she had to reform to have any chance of winning anyone back and keeping her stage show a success. It'd also driven her to study legitimate magic more, in order to improve her stage show, but she'd vowed to avoid using it in a manner that would attract Twilight's attention in a negative way. Needless to say, being approached to basically break her vow and use her tricks for subterfuge and possible military/political trickery had made her less than pleased. He had also met with the Changeling queen, Chrysalis, in their current hiding place in the far northern mountains. The Changelings were a pony race with insect-like attributes and the ability to transform their appearance into any pony they chose, who fed on emotions. They had tried to take over Equestria not long ago, disrupting Cadence's wedding by trying to replace her. The Mane 6 had roundly defeated them, and had done it again when she sought revenge by kidnapping the Cutie Mark Crusaders, a group of pony friends consisting of Scootaloo, a young pegasus who considered herself something of Rainbow Dash's understudy, Applejack's sister Apple Bloom, and Rarity's sister Sweetie Belle, and trying to use them as a lure into a trap. Her animosity toward Celestia and Twilight made her roundly reject Discord's offer, despite him making promises of finding a Changeling territory for them and telling her that what purpose would there be for her if Equestria were defeated and taken away, and her revenge on Twilight and Celestia being forfeited to others.

He grumbled and kicked a rock high into the sky, turning it into a turtle that fell on its back, kicking uselessly to try to roll over. He just wanted to cut loose right now, cause some sort of mayhem to let out his frustration. But if he did that, he'd blow the trust Celestia had put in him and probably end up being turned into stone by Twilight and her friends.

He was a little surprised when he was poked, and turned to see a white, blue maned pony with sunglasses on looking up at him, her gray coated and tie wearing companion standing next to her. "Ah, Vinyl, Octavia, how are you two today?"

Octavia, the gray pony, who happened to be the top concert cellist in Equestria, said nonchalantly in a slight British accent, "We are doing well. What about you, Mr. Discord? You look distracted."

He sighed, explaining the situation. The white pony, Vinyl Scratch (known more commonly by her stage name as the world famous DJ Pon-3) couldn't contain her excitement. "Oh wow, well I'm not a fighter but I have been working on something that somepony like you might enjoy."

Octavia gasped, trying to shut her friend up. "Vinyl, no! This is serious business and you want to show him your...toy? You haven't even tested the thing yet!"

Discord stopped her and said politely, "My dear Vinyl Scratch, you have my attention. Explain." He started to follow Vinyl as Octavia kept trying to stop them. He got fed up at one point, snapping his fingers and transporting her into the top of a tree.

Vinyl started explaining giddily as they walked along, "Okay, you know the Doctor obviously. Probably the least secret secret agent Princess Celestia could ever ask for, given how much he talks. Crazy stuff he talks about too, with aliens and monsters and all of that. But anyways, you know that sonic screwdriver thing he has? He told me about it and I was all like, 'Awesome, a sound weapon!' Yeah, told me that's the only thing it doesn't do. That sorta bummed me out even though the thing seems to be able to do anything else. So I started thinking...what about a sound weapon? It's nonlethal, in theory aside from blown eardrums and knocking folks out it wouldn't do any permanent damage. So..." They walked through Vinyl and Octavia's place to their backyard and toward the edge of a wide meadow near the border of the woods, north of Sweet Apple Acres and east of Fluttershy's cottage. "I created this!" She flung off a canvas covering a gigantic 50 inch woofer, in a cabinet almost as big as Vinyl herself. "My BASS CANNON!"

Discord looked at it, trying to hide the fact he was already impressed by it. "Cool...so how's it work?"

Vinyl grinned again, from ear to ear. "It's pretty simple. The Doctor helped me design it. Basically it works by the principle that if a sound it loud enough, the force of it will be too much to handle. It's got two setting, one using the intro to the song programmed in it as a countdown, after which you hit the green button and activate it, and another where you hit the red button and it just goes straight to attack mode."

Discord nodded, getting closer to it when Vinyl used he unicorn magic to place ear muffs over his ears. "You might want to get back.." She turned back to see Octavia coming to them, picking leaves and bark out of her coat, tossing her a set of ear muffs too. "And hold onto your hindquarters. Things are about to get EPIC!"

Discord floated back beside Octavia as Vinyl said, "Oh, the song is one the Doctor gave me, apparently from the universe he claims he comes from. It was really the only song for this thing!" She smiled as she turned it on, setting it to the first setting, the intro to Flux Pavillion's "Bass Cannon" ringing out. Finally, at the proper moment, she hit the green button and the whole thing boomed, the most ear-splittingly loud bass sound in the history of history tearing up the grass and sending bees and butterflies scattering for nearly 25 yards in front of it, while knocking the three of them over as well. It cut off after that first blast, and Discord hopped up in pure giddy amusement.

"HAHAHAHAUHAHAGH! OH MY, I HAVE GOT TO GET ME ONE OF THESE! THIS IS THE PERFECT ALARM CLOCK FOR THE CASTLE!"

Octavia sat up as well, brushing herself off. "Wouldn't you be concerned about it damaging the structure of the castle?"

Discord guffawed, almost rolling on the ground. "Like I said, the PERFECT alarm clock." He got a hold of himself again, then turned to Vinyl and asked, "You did build blueprints and schematics for this right? Because I'm taking it if that's okay with you."

Vinyl smiled with pride and said, "Knock yourself out, bro."

Back on the ship, Luna had emerged from the mess hall, feeling much better now that she had something in her stomach. She had not talked to Aligorna the enter meal, even though he tried to initiate conversation a dozen times. She was looking at the crew as Aligorna let her wander around the deck. They all looked at her with reverence and respect, and she could tell that they probably weren't a harm to her. That's when she heard a whirring sound in a blank portion of the deck.

Slowly, as if from thin air, a bright blue English police box started to appear, eventually fully forming. The doors opened and she was shocked to see the Doctor stick his head out, only to be greeted by 20 sailor ponies with as many cutlasses pointed right at him. Aligorn and Strife soon joined them, and she could hear Ditzy inside the strange box making panicky noises and screaming, "DONTWORRYDOCTORILLGETUSOUTOFHERE!" She heard a slap, followed by the sound of whirring winding down and the light coming from the box turning black.

The Doctor turned to Ditzy in the darkness of the TARDIS and she squeaked out, "I just don't know what went wrong!" He shook his head and said, "Ditzy, what button did you hit?" She squeaked out again, her voice tiny and embarrassed. "I don't know! I just hit somethiiiiiiing!" He sighed and said, "I know what it was. It's a button that shuts the TARDIS down for 12 hours so that repairs can be safely made. You know, replace panels and stuff like that without risk of electrocution."

Strife was doubled up, laughing so hard he was crying. Aligorna poked him in the ribs and he wiped his eyes. "HA! HO GOSH! OH that's so good! I'm sorry, my lord, but if this is the best Celestia has to offer, we have nothing to worry about."

Aligorna shot him a disapproving look, which got him to stop. The sailors parted as he approached and said, "Hello, Doctor. It's an honor to meet you. I am Prince Aligorna of Aquilonia, and I guess since you and your companion aren't going anywhere for awhile, that means you're my special 'guests.'

A few hours later, Luna was laying on the floor of the cabin, Aligorna sitting on the bed and reading. She was not happy that the Doctor and Ditzy had been taken prisoner, although they didn't seem to be acting like prisoners. She looked up as the door opened. Strife walked in as she could hear the conversation going on outside. The Doctor was trying to ask one of the crew members about certain pieces of equipment, seemingly curious about these old wooden ships. He was being interrupted by Ditzy though, who asked suddenly, "Do you guys have any muffins?!"

The sailor the Doctor was talking to sighed and replied, "Nope, no muffins here ma'am. You see, muffins, cake, bread, all of that tends to go bad quickly at sea. It gets wet, so it gets soggy, and soggy dough products grow mold. What we have is hard tack." She poked her head out to see the sailor handing Ditzy a small, hard round biscuit, more like a cracker. Ditzy looked at it in confusion, her lazy eye almost spinning in her head.

"Hard tack?"

"It's a kind of biscuit. It's flatbread, which stays fresh a lot longer."

Ditzy took a nibble of it, before looking at it in disappointment. "It's so bland! It sucks!"

The sailor looked a little pissed for a second, but seemed to let it go. "You're kinda right, but if you want carbs at sea, this is the best thing to have."

Luna stepped back in as Strife closed the door behind him. Aligorna looked at him with an amused expression. "She's adorable."

Strife grunted out, his eyes closing and a deep breath coming out. "She's not adorable. She's 'special' is what she is. Inattentive, nosy, persistent, seems always a half a wing beat away from crashing into something...and her eyes freak me out. I'm a war god. I revel in mayhem and gore. NOTHING freaks me out!"

Luna shook her head at him, angry. "By 'special', I assume you mean mentally handicapped?! She may be a little klutzy and has a short attention span, but I assure you she's very bright. She's an adventurer of the highest order, a good friend to many who get to know her, a sure shoulder for the Doctor for all his crazy activities, the best mailmare in all of Equestria..."

Strife stuttered, not expecting to be jumped on. "But I mea...I didn't sa...wha...just sto..."

Luna didn't miss a beat and continued on, "And I will not let you disrespect her like that in my presence!"

Strife hung his head apologetically. "Alright. I am sorry, Princess. I sometimes speak out of line when I am annoyed, but you don't know me well enough to know that."

Luna let her anger go and spoke softly. "You are right. I do not know you well enough. I do not know you at all. Why don't you tell me more about yourself."

Strife nodded and sat down, stroking his beard. "Alright. As you already know, I am Discord's brother. We are actually older than you and your sister. We were born around the time this ship was built. When we both matured...if you can call Discord mature...we went our separate ways. He moved to Equestria and quickly rebuilt it as his empire. I'm not as showy or playful as him. I'm a bit more quiet, self-assured. No, I instead stayed out of sight until around the time my brother was defeated by yourself and Celestia. Then I emerged to the Aquilonians and forged myself a deal with them. I would defend them in battle and on the seas in exchange for tribute. This arrangement didn't last long as yourself and your sister hammered out the peace agreement between yourselves and Prince Aligorna here, but the Aquilonians knew the advantage to having two living gods in their midst and still continued to give me due respect, elevating me from benefactor to war god around 900 years ago despite giving up piracy and not being in a state of war. They realized my value that much, which touches my normally cold heart.

"At the same time, Prince Aligorna turned to me for political advice, the church and the state being one in the same in Aquilonia, and I have maintained various advisory positions for him since then, finally becoming vizier in the past 2 years or so."

Luna let it all sink in, especially the timeline. She had her suspicions already, but now they seemed quite clear, and she looked sadly to Aligorna...

Meanwhile, in the Crystal Empire, Twilight and the girls were bowing before the throne of her sister-in-law, Princess Cadence, and her brother, Shining Armor.

Cadence wiped sleep from her eyes. Shining Armor had taken her home to the Crystal Empire so that they themselves could discuss the level of involvement they could offer after they had found out what had happened, and Cadence had of course went to get medicine for her poisoning symptoms. They had quickly realized the the Empire couldn't offer any troops, the population too small for that and the guards needed to defend the Empire itself. But Shining Armor was head of the Royal Guard and Cadence was a princess, so they both would have to leave.

Twilight stood up, running to both of them as they gave her a hug. The other girls stood up too.

Twilight sniffled, saying to them both, "Oh guys, I'm driving myself crazy trying to figure out what to do!"

A commanding voice rang out behind them, as they tuned to see Celestia come in. "We all are, Twilight. I will be honest with all of you...I've had my share of battles over the years, but none of them have had the potential of this, and it makes me afraid. You are not alone, and you do not need to feel that you are."

Everyone bowed to her, before standing. Cadence's calm and gentle voice was about to speak before Discord materialized with a loud pop, holding the Bass Cannon in his arms, and it seemed to be a strain. He set it down, and shyly chuckled, blending into the crowd beside Fluttershy, whispering to her, "Flutters, are you sure you're up for this?"

Fluttershy whispered back, "Discord, I have to be with you all. If we need the Elements of Harmony, I have to be there. I can't let you all get hurt either."

Cadence cleared her throat. "As I was about to say, I think the best option we have is to follow them without confronting them. We will need a full naval crew following behind as leverage, but we will all be on the same ship ahead of them, keeping our distance from the Aquilonian ship. I do not believe they will attack us if we follow them into port, which would be the best place to negotiate with them. Open water is international territory and not under the auspices of either Equestrian or Aquilonian law. While that sounds good as it's neutral ground, it also means that if either side makes a wrong move, they can't be held accountable. While the absolute ideal would be to have them on our shores where we have all the cards, but it's too late for that, so to be truly protected we need to have a negotiating place where some sort of law prevails. Now, we need to delegate certain duties. Rainbow Dash, you and Spike will be in charge of surveillance. Tail them, report on them, but DO NOT CONFRONT THEM! Okay?"

Rainbow Dash grunted. "Yeah, yeah. I got it. Just spy on them..."


	5. Lover's Eyes

Moon Dancing on Water  
Ch. 3: Lover's Eyes

It was night, Luna having just completed her work (surprised somewhat that Celestia hadn't tried to keep daylight until her own strength gave out). She sat in the mess hall, staring at the pale candlelight. She didn't know why she had let the Doctor talk her into this, but she was already formulating what she was going to say. And it pained her a little bit. It needed to be said though. She didn't think Aligorna was fully aware of his own emotions and just how clouded they were, so as a friend, she knew she had to try to set him right.

Aligorna walked in soon after, dressed in his best uniform, in his tri-corner hat as well. He could hear above deck the singing of the lanyard shanties, the Doctor's voice joining the crewmen, as they hoisted down the sails for the night. No word had come about Celestia pursuing them, but he was confident enough that they had a sizable lead on her and could afford to rest for a night. Besides, the remnants of a storm lay ahead. Clouds were tricky things. While weather was produced in Equestria, in the pegasus city of Cloudsdale, once it was made it was basically allowed to wander, and like in our world that wandering was directed largely by the wind and the natural air currents. This storm was moving out of the south, heading north ahead of them. Everyone had felt the wind change an hour earlier and it was decided to lower the sails, try not to drift in its path, and wait it out.

Luna heard it too, the chorus of voices singing, "YO, HO! LAY HER ON DOWN! Down on the bed, to sleep, to dream. YO, HO! LAY HER ON DOWN!" She couldn't help by give a slight smile. One thing was for sure, these ponies were talented musicians. She'd heard the songs much of the day, and while some of the more bawdy tunes had shocked her, they had sung them all beautifully, and their accordion player was almost as good with his instrument as Octavia was on her cello. And the crew had proved themselves to be friendly to both her and the Doctor and Ditzy. In fact, the new company made them seem absolutely giddy.

Aligorna noticed the smile and sat down, about to open the wine and pour some for her, when Ditzy popped her head in, looking a little lost. "Um...I'm not interrupting, am I?"

Aligorna shook his mane. "Not at all. Not yet at least."

Ditzy smiled, relief on her face. "Whew! Can I ask what you have to drink? I realized I forgot to get something with dinner."

Aligorna smiled at her, suppressing a chuckle. "That all depends on what you want, Ms. Doo. We have distilled water..."

"Why is it distilled? There's plenty of water around us. Why can't we just drink that? I mean, I know it's salt water, but salt is good, and water is good, so salt water should be great, right?"

The Doctor came in behind her, clearing his throat. "Actually, it's not. You see, too much salt can actually hurt the body. For that matter, too much water can too, but let's just stick to the salt. It can make you really, really sick. Even kill you if you have too much. So salt water can actually be really bad. So they have to boil the salt out of it before they can drink it."

Aligorna nodded. "He's right. That's why on ships, there's usually other things besides water to drink. We also have whiskey, blackberry brandy, ale, mead, wine, and we have cider. We can't grow much in Aquilonia, but we do have different berries and apples and the like. We also can grow grains pretty well, as they grow anywhere. Oats, barley, hops, wheat, we have all of that. Especially barley. We have a LOT of barley, so we make a LOT of beer."

Ditzy slumped her shoulders. "Um...I'm...I'm a light..."

"You're a light drunk, aren't you?"

"...Yeah."

He smiled and got up, walking into the kitchen. Some of his men had stopped at Sweet Apple Acres soon after they had first arrived (after all, Celestia told them every visit for nearly 100 years now that the Apples made the best of everything), though they hadn't made a big deal of their presence at the time, dressed not in royal duds but just and about naturally. He soon came back, a tall glass of non-alcoholic cider in his hooves. "This better? It's your friend Applejack's stuff."

Ditzy brightened up instantly, taking it from him and taking a quick drink. "AH! Tastes like home!"

He smiled more at her, when the Doctor put a hoof on her back. "Now come on, Ditzy. I was just asking the boys to show me how to use the capstan at some point. Besides, we need to let these two have some time."

They walked away, and he turned to Luna, finally pouring her the the wine. "I've missed you, Luna. A thousand years is a long time to wait, and I'll honestly say I had given up hope."

Luna gulped, taking a shaky sip. "I am surprised you would even remember me after all that time."

Aligorna blushed. "How could I not? I know it was only a week we spent together, interrupted time to time by business, but that time was one of the most amazing times of my life. You were, and still are, beautiful. Your nights are beautiful, and while your sister did an admirable job trying to keep the balance herself, they were never the same under her. Nopony else would have noticed, but I did. And you were fun!"

Luna blushed now herself. "Even with all of my stuffy formality? That I am still trying to smooth over?"

"Yes! Because when we were together, alone, you weren't stuffy and formal. You were a young mare that loved to dance, and sing, and jump on me like you were trying to tackle me. And you laughed the most joyous laugh. What happened to that? What happened to you that you were banished before I had a chance to see that side of you again?"

Luna now hung her head in shame. The memories on Nightmare Moon haunted her, and she didn't like to speak of that time. "I was thrust into power before I had the maturity to deal with jealousy. And my jealousy lead me to invite forces into myself that I couldn't control. I gave in to the darkness in my heart, and I ruined everything in the process. And I'm still awed that I can ever be forgiven for my sins. I am working hard to make myself worthy of that forgiveness, but I still have trouble forgiving myself, and that makes me skeptical of the sincerity of others when they approach me."

Aligorna took a big drink, and frowned. "Luna, look at me. Everypony has had to deal with those emotions before. They're a part of life. I'm the last of my line, and I have no siblings, so I can't imagine what it's like to live in the shadow of a sibling that literally outshines me, but I used to be jealous of my father while he was alive. He was always a tougher fighter and a better sailor than I am. He could almost singlehandedly hoist a sail, while boarding another ship with his cutlass out and flashing. I always wanted to be like him, but I just couldn't be. And it used to make me so angry, because the people loved him, and held him in such high regard, and I felt that they didn't love me at all. It wasn't until I learned that I was a far better negotiator than him, and that the people respected that as much as a good fight, that I learned that they both could, and did, love me all long. So don't doubt your people. Don't be angry with yourself for your own natural emotions. And most of all, learn to love yourself again. Please."

Luna nodded, her eyes softening at him. "I will try, but I need you to listen to me now."

Aligorna gulped himself.

"Aligorna, this can't work. Not the way it is right now. First of all...you stole me. You stole me from my home, from my family, from my people. I can forgive you for that. You were afraid, weren't you? I'm mad about it, but I'm willing to forgive you. Especially if this was Strife's idea...that he talked you into getting over your shyness by going back to what your people are good at. You put a lot of trust in him. I don't know why. I believe he has ulterior motives, but we can talk about that later. No, the reason this can't work is because you..."

She was cut off by Aligorna's frown, as he pushed his chair in, the food not even out yet but this beautiful night already feeling like a failure. Luna bolted after him, trying to get him to turn back to her.

"Aligorna, please hear me out. Just listen!"

They emerged above deck right as she yelled that pleading yell, the whole ship stopping, everyone pretending to be finishing their work but listening to them intently.

Aligorna turned back to her, but his eyes avoided her.

Luna steadied herself again as she continued. "The reason this can't work between us is because of how you see me. You don't. You see the me I was during our first meeting. You see the young ruler still little more than a filly, an adolescent with the world ahead of her. And you filter that through your perceptions of what the Alicorn race is. We are not gods! I do not know what we are for sure. It is most certainly blessed, but it is not godhood. For one thing, gods do not die. If we were gods, your ancestors and your parents would be with us now. You already admitted they aren't though. We can die, we can be killed, we can get ill, and we can be injured. Those are not godly qualities, they are mortal ones. I wouldn't mind your delusions so much if they stayed solely YOUR delusions, but you are projecting them onto me. I am no goddess. I am just a pony, granted immense power but a pony nonetheless. I am not a goddess, nor am I the mare you used to know. You don't think Nightmare Moon changed me?! Thanks to her, I can never be who I once was. I have to build a new me, something I struggle with daily. I squandered away my youth, and I can never gain it back. But you don't want to believe that. You want the me that you once had. She's dead, Aligorna! The darkness in my heart killed her, and you cannot revive her. And if you are not willing to accept that, then I want nothing at all to do with you! Now if..."

Aligorna looked like he was going to disappear under her withering gaze, backing away from her as to him she seemed to grow larger than life. He couldn't listen to her anymore. He couldn't face her like this, not if she was going to reject him so roundly. Eventually, overwhelmed, he ran. He ran to his cabin door, opening it in a panic.

Luna was stunned, galloping after him. "Aligorna, wait! I wasn't done yet! Please, please, please don't do this to me!"

She stopped when she saw the heartache in his eyes as he stopped her, screaming at her, "I GET IT! YOU HATE ME, AND I WAS A FOOL FOR EVEN TRYING! Fine, if that's the way you feel, you can go home with your sister when we get to port. And you two will never have to deal with me ever again!"

Aligorna slammed the door in Luna's face. She tried desperately to open it, to explain to him, but the door was locked and she knew he wasn't going to let her in again tonight.

Luna slumped to the deck, hiding her face in her hooves and weeping. "Damn it! Damn it all, you fool! I was going to tell you that if you would just get to know this new me, if we could just start again as friends, maybe there is a chance for us!" That's when she noticed Strife looking at her almost triumphantly. Damn him! He set all this up wanting her to fail, didn't he?! She didn't know what he was after, but she had to make this right somehow. If only Aligorna would give her another chance...if she deserved one after hurting him like that.

The Doctor couldn't bear to see Luna like this, and he and Ditzy quickly ran to her, helping her up and taking her down to the shipmen's quarters, trying to soothe her. Ditzy didn't feel comfortable right now, her normally confused mind at even more of a loss for coherent thought, so she gave the princess a hug and returned to deck, hoping the Doctor could work his magic and sooth her.

Above the entire scene, Rainbow Dash was hovering over the ship, whispering out observations for Spike to record. She was in shock herself, part of her wanting to rush in and break down Aligorna's door and give him a piece of her mind, another part in awe of the sincerity of the whole scene. She didn't envy Aligorna, having so little experience dating that he could be talked into thinking kidnapping counted as a legitimate courting tactic.

Everything seemed to be going well, as she observed the rest of the crew starting to go to bed, leaving only Strife and Ditzy above deck. Then Ditzy had to go and notice her.

"RAINBOW DASH! HI! HEY! DOWN HERE! YOO HOO! IT'S DITZY DOO!"

Rainbow tried to ignore her, but Ditzy just wouldn't give up, repeating that sentence over and over. Finally, Rainbow couldn't contain herself, screaming as the Doctor came back above deck.

"DITZY! WOULD YOU PLEASE SHUT IT!? I WANT TO CHAT, I DO, BUT I'M TAKING CARE OF SOME BUSINESS RIGHT NOW!"

That attracted Strife's attention, as he disappeared through the deck. Rainbow had noticed, and that didn't make her feel comfortable at all.

Ditzy was still excited and shouted out to Rainbow Dash, "ARE YOU HERE TO SAVE US?! WHERE'S THE OTHERS?!"

Rainbow was about to respond, but the Doctor put his hooves over Ditzy's mouth anyways...which made the groaning sound of something heavy opening resound through the night. That's when Rainbow Dash saw the front of the ship open up just under the figurehead, and she was confronted by something that made her gasp in shock. There, aimed at her, was a cannon. Not just a cannon, but a huge one, with a 72 inch barrel and a bore bigger than her own head. And Strife was behind it, smiling at her. Right before he pulled the firing string, the 9 inch ball flying right at her!

Rainbow literally dashed out of the way just before the ball smashed her out of the sky, letting out a loud pitched yelp and taking off away from the ship, trying to reach a safe distance away so Spike could finish his letter.

As she ran for one of the rare times in her life she had ever done so, she could hear Ditzy's voice fading out, "WAAAAIIIITTTTTTT! BRING ME BACK A MUFFIN! ALL THEY HAVE IS HARD TACK AND IT SUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKS!"

In the shores of the Equestrian city of Baltimare, Celestia and the others had gathered, waiting on Rainbow Dash's report. And it arrived soon enough, her jaw dropping as she shared it with the other Princesses and Shining Armor. Then they all turned to Discord.

Twilight was the one to speak, trying to calm herself and saying as smoothly as she could, "Discord, do you have a brother?"

Discord tried to look innocent, but he knew he couldn't hide it. "Damn it, Strife, what the heck did you get yourself into now?"

Everyone stared at him as she shook his head and said, "Yes, I do have a brother. An older brother named Strife. He's got power over conflict. He's really good at getting into people's heads, finding those things that are bothering them no matter how small, and turning them into a full blown fight. If you think I'm pompous, arrogant, and a bit of a butt, then you have no idea what we're getting into. IF Strife is involved in some way with what's going on..." Everyone was surprised to see him shudder, and a sense of dread fell over them.

"All my life, he's been nothing but a bully. Said he loved me, called it tough love, but all I got in my childhood from him were black eyes, soliloquies about how I derive my power from him, that there has to be conflict before there can be chaos instead of the other way around, and a sense of complete contempt. He's always said that he's stronger because he was the first born, and I can honestly say that growing up he was..."

Celestia let out a ragged sigh, this development being one she would have to carefully figure out how to navigate. "That's enough. Take your time explaining it all, and only when you are comfortable doing so. You are not comfortable with it right now, so you don't need to force yourself." She looked at the gathered fleet, she knew far too small, her multi-hued translucent pastel mane billowing behind her as her head shot up to stare at the moon.

"Luna, hold on for me little sister. We will work this out somehow. I promise you."


	6. Whispers in the Dark

Ch. 4: Whispers in the Dark

The following morning, Luna stood on deck, watching her sister's sun rise above the horizon. After the gun was fired, she couldn't sleep. She looked haggard, though given the midnight blue tint of her coat it would be hard to tell. The Doctor and Ditzy soon joined her, both staring out at the sea. Just then, a whale breached the surface less than 20 yards away.

The Doctor let out a long, contented sigh. "Don't things like that just make you so happy to be alive? It's easy to get lost in your worries and concerns that just enjoying the little things becomes elusive. But when you see this? When you can just experience the majesty of the world around you? That's something that I'd never give up on."

Luna smiled at him a little, nodding. "I suppose you are right."

Ditzy giggled at the both, before jumping up and down and waving at the whale. "HI! HOW YOU DOING?!"

The whale let out a massive bellow before diving down again. All three watched it and sighed in unison.

The sounds that followed the whale were a lot less harmonious. They could hear the cabin door open, as Strife and Aligorna seemed to be in the middle of a heated argument, Strife launching a protest of some kind.

"My lord, this is just ridiculous! I'm your quartermaster after all!"

Aligorna stretched his wings out as he stepped out of the cabin, looking very annoyed. "I do not care, Strife! I don't know what's up with you this trip, but you're getting out of control. Yes, I know the rainbow-maned one was spying on us. You seem to have forgotten one thing though...I am the captain, not you! Only I get to decide if ANY of the guns are fired!"

Strife huffed and puffed, his annoyance seeming to turn into a barely controlled rage. "I was never going to hit her! It was a warning shot! It would have just grazed passed her! Besides, after how last night ended you were in no position to be trying to make leadership decisions like that!"

"Just grazed past? If it would have grazed her, with the size of the ball that thing fires, it would have taken her wing clean off! And as for my state of mind, you know I can flip back into captain mode at the drop of a bit! Now, stop fudging arguing with me! Get yourself a mop and start swabbing!"

Before Strife could protest again, he stomped off across the deck, the waking crew looking at him worriedly. Aligorna could be emotional, as last night had proved, but he was normally composed, and almost always deferential to Strife. And he was making a beeline towards Luna, in this state, after what happened last night?

They all watched, as Luna turned to him, her eyes softening. "Aligorna? I...I have something that I need to say...please listen to me this time."

Aligorna's eyes softened too, and a collective sigh of relief passed over the crew. "I...I have something I want to say too. Please, by all means go first though."

Luna hung her head, feeling unsure of herself and afraid. She knew she had blown last night badly. "I want to apologize. I meant everything I said last night, but I didn't say it in a way that made it clear what my intentions were and I hurt you badly in the process. As friends, can you forgive me?"

Aligorna choked a little, a single tear stinging his left eye. That's what he wanted to hear, and it made what he was about to say all the more easy. "Can you forgive me for trying to force a romantic dinner on you before you were ready, and before we had even discussed our current status at all? Because if you can, then I can forgive you for your brutal honesty and allow you to finish the conversation I so rudely interrupted."

Luna smiled widely, so much so that her teeth sparkled in the early morning sun. The nippy autumn air seemed to warm as she and Aligorna nuzzled, muzzles rubbing together. She then cleared her throat and said, "So, you were discussing what happened with Strife last night after we broke company? I...I was afraid to see what the commotion was about."

Aligorna started walking towards the cabin again, motioning for Ditzy and the Doctor to follow as Luna trotted alongside him. "Yes. It seems your friend Rainbow Dash and Princess Twilight's dragon had caught up to us and was trying to spy on us. Strife took it upon himself to try to scare her off with the main gun. I didn't approve much. I know it seems I am inviting a fight with your sister, but that is not my intention and I don't want to give her even more reason to desire one. You see, as Strife outlined this plan to me when I agreed to it, we were going to take you for the sole purpose of giving you and I more time together. I know it sounds foolish in retrospect, but you were right when you said I was shy. I've been waiting a thousand years for this, but when the time came and you returned, I found that I was afraid of being rejected after all that time. I wasn't sure if you would even remember me. I was scared, and then Strife, who I normally trust with all my might, suggested that if we had time together then that would go a long way. It was time for me to work out a new treaty with your sister anyways, and I had not yet met the new Princesses, so the timing seemed almost divinely inspired."

As they entered the cabin, Luna shook her head, both amused and disappointed. "I knew Strife masterminded this. Did you know that he seemed to gloat at me last night after our disagreement? I...I worry around him. I mentioned that I believe he has an ulterior motive, but we don't need another fight about that. Let that be my worry, not yours. Forget I said anything..."

Strife was just returning from getting the mop and bucket, a scowl on his face, when he popped his head in to plead his own case. "Lord, I was not gloating. I was happy, and you know that even when I am happy I can still look threatening. It is a sad circumstance of my appearance. You see, I knew she was going to say what she said. I did not expect you to act so overwhelmed, my lord, but I did know what was coming. I was happy because that air needed to be cleared. The past needed to be buried in the past if you two are to ever hope of having a new future."

Luna looked at him, skeptical. It certainly didn't seem he was happy last night, but his argument made sense. Was she misjudging him, or was Aligorna's trust misplaced in him? She felt so confused, and her tiredness wasn't helping matters any.

Aligorna just shot Strife a look that made Strife back away, rolling his eyes. Aligorna's attention then returned to Luna. "I don't know what's going on with him. He has not been acting like himself since we left home. I don't want to push too hard though. Aquilonia does not need a rift between its ruler and his top adviser."

He then turned to the Doctor and Ditzy, who had remained quiet this whole time, which was odd for Ditzy. Neither felt it was their place to interrupt the two though.

Aligorna cleared his throat and wiped some sleep from his eyes as he said to them, "Ditzy, Strife told me that it was your excitability that alerted him to Rainbow Dash's presence. Is this true?"

Ditzy looked indignant. "I...I didn't know she was spying. I thought she was swooping in to rescue us. I thought she brought back-up with her. I wouldn't have said anything if I'd known she was alone. And besides, it was HIS decision to attack her! He can't be putting the blame for this on me." She lowered her eyes, he lip quivering as she pouted.

Aligorna nodded his fore hooves crossing over his chest. "That's what I needed to hear. My offer will still stand. You see, while I know I shouldn't trust either of you with so little time together, I feel like I can. Your machine's been operational for several hours now and neither of you have made any attempt to escape. Ditzy could leave when she wants thanks to her wings, but she hasn't. Since you both seem content to be here, and the Doctor especially seems to be curious about the operation of the ship and getting to know my crew, I am going to offer you both a position on this ship. Do you both accept?"

Both looked at each other as if this was something that needed serious consideration, but both turned back and nodded enthusiastically in a matter of moments. To them, this seemed like a normal situation for them. The TARDIS tended to not take them where they wanted to go, but always put them where they needed to be. Where they needed to be right now seemed to be here, helping Luna and Aligorna connect.

Aligorna then presented them each a contract outlining both a list of ship rules and duties. "Good, I'm happy to hear that. Here are the basic rules you will both need to follow. First, you will obey all of my orders for the duration of your service. Second, you will each get a share of wages equal to all the other crew members. Strife gets 1 and a half times the earnings of others as quartermaster, and I receive double. If you are injured in your service, you will receive an extra 15% of your regular wages. Third, you will perform your duties to the best of your abilities. Anything less than 100% effort will result in disciplinary action. Fourth, you will look out for your fellow mates. If they become injured our ill, you will help to pick up their slack. The third rule is slackened in such an incident, but 100% effort is still expected nonetheless. Fifth, you will each receive a cutlass for protection or offensive action, and a knife for use for either personal protection or for working the ropes and trimming the lines. Cherish these. Keep them clean daily and ready for immediate use. Sixth, no gambling on ship. Seventh, the time to retire is 2 hours after moonrise. No work shall be done after this time, and all lights are to be extinguished. Eighth, any sailor captured by an enemy ship has the right to request parlay, or the refusal to answer questions, until he meets with the enemy captain. Ninth, there shall be no talk of desertion or defection, and any such talk will result in immediate marooning or being made to go overboard. Tenth, there shall be no physical fights on board this ship. If any of these rules are broken, they shall be dealt with by a variable degree system of punishment based on the rule broken and rather or not they have prior offenses. These punishments are one, swab duty for one day; two, being made to run the mast; three, a day of solitary confinement; four, forty lashes with a cat-o-nine-tales, five, marooning; and six, keelhauling. Do you two agree to these rules?"

Again, both nodded, although Ditzy looked confused on what keelhauling was. She would have to ask about that.

Aligorna then produced one long, sharp needle for each of them. "Good, then just sign on the line."

Ditzy looked at the needle in confusion. "That's not a pen, silly!"

Aligorna shook his head and chuckled softly. "This is serious business, Miss Doo. If you're going to agree to this, I need you to prick yourselves and sign in blood. You do this and you become not just crew members, but blood siblings."

Ditzy looked hesitant now. "I...wow...you..."

"Play for keeps? Yes, I do. As has my entire family for 7 generations now. That is why it is your choice if you agree or not. Clearly, we don't mistreat prisoners like you might expect, so there is no punishment nor any stigma attached if you refuse."

She thought about it carefully, looking at the Doctor. He picked up his needle and made the commitment, so seeing that, she did too, though she flinched when she pricked herself and whimpered.

Aligorna looked at the signatures and smiled at both, getting up and giving each of them a hug. "Glad to have you on, brother and sister! Now, get to work!" He smiled and slapped each on the back as they both trotted off to roars of approval.

Luna meanwhile, still trying to fight sleep, said, "I am not sure Ditzy understands that keelhauling involves dragging a pony across the bottom of the ship."

Aligorna shrugged. "I honestly don't think it matters. That is such a rare punishment, meant more as a deterrent since we do not have capital punishment per se. If push comes to shove, we maroon ponies, and even that is rare. Usually confinement is enough to make a disobedient sailor think about their actions and change their ways."

He looked at Luna as her eyes grew ever heavier. "Luna, go to sleep. We will have more discussion and another meal tonight."

After Luna was fast asleep, Ditzy and Aligorna were walking the deck and talking to each other. Aligorna was concerned by the lack of bustle on deck. It was still very early, but normally the deck was busy at this hour. It seemed all that had been done was raising the sails, and now it was deserted, except for Strife, who was finishing up his swabbing of the deck and was now going to clean the mess hall, still incredibly annoyed with his fortunes.

Ditzy broke her absentminded stare at the horizon to just seemingly randomly blurt out, "I have a question! You know how you said your people can grow food? So...why do you eat fish?" She made a sour face, her good eye peeking at him.

Aligorna let out a hardy laugh and said patiently, "Ah, now this is the million bit question, isn't it? What would cause a pony to start eating a distinctly non-pony diet. It's complicated to explain, but you know how Equestria has a roughly eight month growing season? Well we..."

"...Only have a 4 month growing season. So that doesn't give them much time to grow nearly enough to feed their population. It's enough to last awhile, but as we all know, having to store enough food for a 3 month winter is hard even for us. I imagine it is a heck of a lot harder when you have an eight month winter. So it didn't take the Aquilonians long to realized they had to rely on the sea to supplement their diets. They used to be whalers too, but they didn't eat those. They used them for lamp oil. In fact, until Equestria found out alternate sources of fuel, whaling was an even bigger trade between the two nations than fishing was."

Twilight was in a zone now. If there was one thing she loved most with her friends, it was teaching them something new. They always taught her so much about life and friendship, so her sharing her intellectual knowledge with them was the least she could do.

Fluttershy shifted a hoof on the deck of Celestia's ship as though in consternation, the Mane Six gathered on it as they looked out at the vast expanse of ocean around them. "But...why would anyone from Equestria eat fish? What did the fish ever do to us?"

Fluttershy's love for all animals was all-abiding. The idea of any creature eating meat made her sad, and the idea of one that wasn't a carnivore choosing to eat it made her extremely angry.

Twilight didn't look too happy either. She shared a lot of Fluttershy's concerns, and the idea of ponies eating fish upset her sensibilities too. "It's largely the coastal cities, the high-society ponies that live their. To them, it's an exotic delicacy. And it's not just food we use the fish for. Some of it is for conservation reasons, which you should appreciate. If something should ever happen to our fish populations, like a plague or a storm that gets out of the Pegasi's control, we have some fisheries around to help replenish those species."

The sound of heavy hooves sounded behind them and Twilight turned to see Shining Armor appearing above deck behind her. She trotted up to him and nuzzled him. "Hey, BBBFF."

He smirked and then gave her a noogie, one hoof circling her neck and the other messing up her hair. "How are you doing this morning, Twily?"

"Not that good. I'm just really scared. I'm not a soldier like you, and I don't know if I can command an entire army."

"That's why we avoid invasion if we can. Let's just get into port, arrange a meeting, and see if we can hammer something out. Besides, don't we have all the power? I mean three Alicorns, your friends, a draconequus, and myself? There's probably no need for the Guard anyways. They're here as a just in case."

It was then that the steps of Cadence and Celestia echoed out too, as Discord floated up with them.

"Princesses, I insist. I have to do this alone. Let me go."

Celestia shook her head sternly. "No. Understand Discord that it's not that I don't trust you. I do. I'm genuinely worried about YOU."

Discord sneered at her, displeased. "I don't think you understand the gravity of the situation. If Strife is involved, then forget any plans you have for a peaceful resolution to this. It's all going to go to hell in a hand basket. That's why I need to go alone. I can at least try to talk some sense into him, and if not, I know exactly what to expect and can be free to do what's necessary to counteract it. Your keeping a leash on me isn't going to help us any."

Twilight walked to Celestia's side, holding her head high at him. "Discord, the answer is no. If things could get as bad as you think they could, then it makes more sense to me to keep all of us together. There's safety, and power, in numbers."

Discord growled at her, but she didn't flinch at all. He slumped his shoulders in defeat, looking over at Fluttershy with nervousness. "Fine I guess. If you really believe there's safety in numbers, fine. But know this...I will do whatever is necessary to protect my own."

He then looked behind them to see the dozen ships of the Equestrian Royal Guard, and frowned in an even deeper nervousness. Something was going to happen. He could feel it. What though, that was the question.

Later that night, it became clear to Aligorna and Luna what had happened to the crew. The mess hall had been converted into something even more impressive than just a simple one-on-one candlelit dinner. Instead, it had been made into as close an approximation of an intimate romantic restaurant as possible, lightly lit with soft candles on all the tables and some old banners hung on the walls. Both smiled shyly as they sat down, Aligorna's hooves resting on hers as they stared each other in the eyes. Luna wasn't telling that she had worked this all out with the Doctor and Ditzy the previous night, who had then worked it out with the rest of the crew this morning. No, instead she took in how perfectly they had set it up on such short notice, and how much it had pleased Aligorna.

Aligorna didn't let on that he had set something up with Ditzy during their private talk either, who had relayed it to the Doctor and the ship musicians. Soon, folksy melody started to drift out from a guitar, as the gathered crewmen started to sing.

"You hold your truth so purely  
Well swerve not through the minds of stallions  
This lie is dead

This cup of yours tastes holy  
But a brush with the devil can clear your mind and strengthen your spine

But hooves tap into what you were once  
And I'm worried that I blew my only chance

Whispers in the dark  
Steal a kiss and you'll break your heart  
Pick up your clothes and curl your toes  
Learn your lesson, lead me home  
Spare my sins for the ark, I was too slow to depart  
I'm a cad but I'm not a fraud, I set out to serve the Lord

But my heart was colder when you'd gone  
And I lost my head but found the one that I love  
Under the sun, under the sun"

He smiled at her softly as the musicians broke out into an instrumental break, the Doctor and Ditzy keeping time by stomping on the floor, several sailors wooping and hollering joyously.

Luna was stunned, but couldn't suppress the smile on her face. It was touching, to say the least. And profoundly honest. And a deep-felt apology to her. Suddenly, her decking out the mess hall seemed paltry in comparison.

"But my heart was colder when you'd gone  
And I lost my head; let's live while we are young  
While we are young  
While we are young  
While we are young"

Luna bowed her head, feeling a little humbled. "Aligorna, you never blew your chance. What I meant to tell you last night...and failed at...was that if you're willing to get to know this new me, to be my friend first, then I'm not opposed to seeing where we can go. Can you...can you do that for me?"

Aligrona smiled and leaned closer, his nose touching hers, causing her to giggle a little as his breath tickled her.

"Luna, that was a silly thing to ask. Of course I can do that!"

The crew burst out in a raucous cheer, as Luna beamed from ear to ear. Her eyes scanned around and landed on Strife, who shrugged at her with indifference. That seemed odd to her. Once again she couldn't put her hoof on him, couldn't figure him out. But she could worry about that later. Now it was time to just enjoy dinner, with her friend!


End file.
